better than the church deserves

His tongue sometimes stumbles, but his brain and his heart are
among the church's best, and probably better than it deserves.

These words come at the close of Alex Kirby's analysis for the BBC of the furore around the Archbishop of Canterbury, following his publicised exploration of how there can be legitimate provision under English law for religious conscience. (I believe that it's English law being discussed.)

And Comment from Rev Canon Edgar Ruddock of USPG

Archbishop Rowan’s comments were ‘intelligent, wise and prophetic’. After the wind came the fire and the storm – all in reaction to the Archbishop’s comments on Sharia law last week, it’s time for a pause.

In his role as Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams is uniquely gifted, as a churchman and an academic, to contribute to serious national debate about the kind of society Britain wants to become. His lecture to a group of senior lawyers legitimately addressed the complex issue of how the law contributes to the development and sustenance of a healthy pluralist society.

In the context of mission in Britain, where we live in an increasingly secular environment, many Christians have been concerned to explore how their voice can be heard, and their distinctive ‘conscience’ enshrined in law. Archbishop Rowan sought to extend this distinctiveness to other faith communities also, allowing all members of this society access to an understanding of the law of the land that links into diverse, not simply monochrome, spiritual roots.